NASHVILLE, TN – August 23, 2012 – SpecialtyCare today announced that Gary Brukardt, its founder, chairman, and CEO, died unexpectedly Tuesday evening in Nashville.
Mr. Brukardt was 66 years old and a highly respected leader in the healthcare industry. He founded SpecialtyCare, Inc. in 2006 and was its Chairman and CEO since the company’s inception. Under his leadership, SpecialtyCare became the premier provider of outsourced clinical services, supporting 322,000 surgical procedures annually at more than 760 hospitals. Prior to forming SpecialtyCare, Mr. Brukardt was President and CEO of Renal Care Group from 2003 to 2006 and its Chief Operating Officer from 1996 to 2003. Renal Care Group provided dialysis services to over 32,500 patients at more than 450 outpatient dialysis facilities. Mr. Brukardt moved to Nashville in 1991 when he became Executive Vice President of Baptist HealthCare affiliates and Chairman/President of Health Net Management, Inc., both located in Nashville, TN. Prior to 1991, Mr. Brukardt was at Voluntary Hospitals of America, Inc. (VHA), as Vice President for Managed Care. While at VHA, he was a founder and principal of VHA Health Ventures a national managed care consulting group and a founder and senior officer of Partners National HealthPlans a joint venture of VHA and Aetna. Also, while at VHA, Mr. Brukardt established the services business unit of the VHA Supply Company.
Dr. Harry Jacobson, SpecialtyCare Board Member, said, “Today is a very sad day for the healthcare community and for SpecialtyCare. Gary was a visionary and a servant leader. He put together an amazing team of experienced healthcare leaders that uphold his high standards of integrity and hold firm to his belief in delivering only the best in patient care. Gary will be greatly missed.”
In recent months, Mr. Brukardt had moved away from day-to-day leadership activities because of health issues and CFO Mike Mauldin had assumed the role of Interim CEO. Mr. Brukardt and the Board of Directors had recently finalized plans to officially appoint Mike Mauldin as the ongoing CEO of SpecialtyCare.
Mr. Brukardt began his career in 1972 at St. Luke’s Hospital Medical Center in Phoenix, Arizona, followed by several positions with the Presbyterian/St. Luke’s Medical Center system in Denver, Colorado where he established Mountain Medical Affiliates, the first PPO in the nation.
Mr. Brukardt grew up in the Green Bay, Wisconsin area and following service in the US Army, graduated from the University of Wisconsin Oshkosh in 1971 with a B.A. in International Studies. He received a Masters of Business Administration in International Management from Thunderbird, School of Global Management in Glendale, Arizona in 1972. He is survived by his wife, Karen, two grown children, Ryan and Briana and their spouses, and by his three granddaughters.
During his 40 years in healthcare, Mr. Brukardt was actively involved in many healthcare organizations. In recent years, he held board positions at the Nashville Healthcare Council, University of Wisconsin Oshkosh, Thunderbird School of Global Management, Medgenics, Inc., and Vyteris, Inc. (formerly MediSync BioServices, Inc.).
About SpecialtyCare
SpecialtyCare is the largest provider of outsourced clinical services in the nation and is dedicated to assisting hospital operating rooms in their efforts to improve operational efficiencies, improve outcomes, and decrease blood utilization. SpecialtyCare provides highly specialized clinical services to the operating room and related areas of the hospital. Services include perfusion, autotransfusion, surgical assist, minimally invasive surgical support, sterile processing department management, intraoperative neuromonitoring, and blood management programs. SpecialtyCare provides services to more than 760 hospitals in 44 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and Germany. SpecialtyCare’s website is available at www.specialtycare.net.
